CMMI-Led MEDCONNECT Initiative to Test 15 Ocean Solutions Across Mediterranean

25 September 2026
Edited By: Haley McQueen

Connecting blue innovators and scaling solutions across the Mediterranean: this is the mission of MEDCONNECT, the Mediterranean Lighthouse of the EU Mission "Restore our Ocean and Waters," officially launching on Tuesday, September 29, 2026, at the Limassol Chamber of Commerce and Industry. At a time when the Mediterranean is under growing pressure from climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss, MEDCONNECT aims to move promising innovations beyond the pilot stage and into real coastal environments, accelerating their deployment, financing, and uptake across the region.

Gotelenne Piaton, MEDCONNECT Project Coordinator CMMI. (Image credit: MEDCONNECT)

The public event will take place from 19:00 to 20:30 at the Chamber’s premises (170 Franklin Roosevelt, Limassol), opening the MEDCONNECT Kick-off Meeting on September 29–30.

Funded by the European Union under Horizon Europe and coordinated by the Cyprus Marine and Maritime Institute (CMMI), MEDCONNECT brings together 20 partners across the Mediterranean Basin. Over three years, the project will work through 14 national hubs and three regional living lab systems in Croatia, Cyprus, and Spain, where 15 innovative solutions will be tested and refined under real coastal conditions. MEDCONNECT will also support access to public and private investment, digital monitoring, behavioral change, and local capacity building, with the goal of scaling validated solutions and creating a lasting Mediterranean innovation ecosystem.

The public launch event will open with Zacharias Siokouros, CEO of CMMI, followed by an institutional address by Dr. Theodoulos Mesimeris, Permanent Secretary of the Deputy Ministry of Shipping of the Republic of Cyprus. Gotelenne Piaton, MEDCONNECT Project Coordinator, will present the project, followed by the fireside chat “MEDCONNECT: connecting blue innovators, scaling solutions for our Mediterranean.” Remarks will also be delivered by H.E. Clélia Chevrier Kolačko, Ambassador of France to the Republic of Cyprus.

“MEDCONNECT marks more than the formal start of a European project: it is the beginning of a shared ambition for the Mediterranean,” said Gotelenne Piaton, MEDCONNECT Project Coordinator at CMMI. “Our goal is to connect actors across the basin, bring innovative solutions into real-world environments and create the conditions for them to be replicated and scaled.”

The two-day Kick-off Meeting will bring together partners from more than 14 countries across the Mediterranean Basin, alongside representatives of CINEA and DG MARE, and will conclude with a visit to the Port of Limassol and EUROGATE Container Terminal.

Participation in the public event on September 29, from 19:00, is free, subject to registration: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/e/5aBx79Sgjt